Official Use of Hebrew Calendar Dates Gains Support

The Knesset plenum approved a preliminary reading of a bill on the use of Hebrew dates, as opposed to Gregorian calendar dates. Member of Knesset Elazar Stern (Hatenua) proposed that any official identification issued by a public authority should clearly use Hebrew calendar dates. This provision shall not apply to formal identification papers for non-Jewish citizens. The bill must still pass additional readings before becoming law.

MK Stern said, Sunday evening, "the Hebrew calendar is an integral part of the history of the Jewish people. This bill, which would increase the use of the Hebrew date, is another step in strengthening Jewish democratic character of the state of Israel."